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Playstation Plus Could be a Vital Part of the PS4

In the week since we’ve heard about the existence of the Playstation 4, there has been a lot of speculation surrounding how Sony will use digital distribution

PlayStation Network (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

to define its new console. It’s confirmed that, as with the Playstation Vita, every title will be available as both a digital download and a physical disc on the first day. Sony Worldwide Studios head Shuhei Yoshida speculated that in the future, the company might use a subscription service not unlike cable TV.

“It’s been really well received – the value is quite extraordinary and the take-up has trebled over the course of the past year. We definitely see that as a core part of the way forward. We’re not yet in a position to disclose our plans for the future of PlayStation Plus but there will definitely be a prominent role to play for it in the PlayStation 4 landscape.”

Given Sony’s acquisition of Gakai, the prominence of digital distribution and its commitment to the core gaming market, I think Playstation Plus will transition from being an additional product for the committed gamer to a core service, not unlike how Xbox Live Gold works for Microsoft. Of course, Sony will probably still have to follow the precedent it set on PS3 by offering multiplayer and video streaming without a subscription, thus putting even more pressure on developing robust, valuable offerings to justify yearly fees.

Implemented right, strong subscriptions could be a real boon for Sony. Playstation plus was already an advantage for Sony over Microsoft in the last generation, though I’m not sure it was publicized well enough. Commiting to premium subscriptions right out of the gate could give the technological powerhouse that is PS4 a service edge as well.

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